Cabinet Office

Election Finance and Policy

Chloe Smith: This Government is committed to ensuring our democracy is secure, fair, modern and transparent and through the changes being brought in by the Elections Bill, we are updating our electoral systems to ensure they are kept up to date for our age.The Elections Bill will progress this week to Committee stage in the House of Commons, and to aid hon. Members in their consideration of the Bill, I am today (15 September) publishing two documents relating to measures in the Elections Bill: specifically an illustrative Electoral Commission Strategy and Policy Statement; and the Government’s response to the Committee on Standards in Public Life (CSPL) report into Regulating Election Finance.Electoral Commission Strategy and Policy StatementAs I set out in my statement to the House on 17 June, the Elections Bill provides for the introduction of a Strategy and Policy Statement, which will set out guidance and principles to which the Electoral Commission must have regard in exercising their functions. I committed to publish an illustrative example of this Statement to aid parliamentarians’ understanding of this measure, and I have today placed a copy of this in the Libraries of both Houses. The Government will continue to engage with interested parties, including the Parliamentary Parties Panel, on this illustrative Statement.It is important to note that this is an illustrative example of the Strategy and Policy Statement - the Bill does not include the text of the Statement, and instead makes provision for the Statement to be introduced in secondary legislation. Following Royal Assent, a draft Statement will be subject to a statutory consultation with the stakeholders listed in the Bill before the approval of Parliament is sought.To further support Parliament’s scrutiny of the Bill, on 7 September I also made a statement to the House on the role of the Speaker’s Committee in holding the Electoral Commission to account, and placed an infographic outlining the Commission’s existing accountability framework in the Libraries of Both Houses.The Government response to the Committee on Standards in Public Life (CSPL) report on Regulating Election FinanceWe have today published the Government’s response to the CSPL report on Regulating Election Finance. The Government welcomes the report published in July by the CSPL, and agrees with the key principles of fairness, transparency and integrity which have guided theirwork. Indeed, our existing regulatory framework is already based upon these principles.It is, of course, important that the rules around electoral finance are kept under review and updated as necessary. As I set out in my statement to the House on 15 June, the Elections Bill is making important reforms to the regulatory framework to support public confidence in the integrity of our electoral system, by strengthening and updating political finance and campaigning regulation; these include reforms that relate directly to recommendations made in the CSPL report.Electoral law is complex and it is important that any changes are made with careful consideration. Therefore, the Government intends to look at all the recommendations in the CSPL report alongside other recommendations set out in similar reports, including the forthcoming Reports from the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee into the work of the Electoral Commission and the Elections Bill, as part of further work examining the regulatory framework for elections, beyond the Elections Bill.We are the stewards of a fantastic democratic heritage which must be kept up to date to protect our democracy and maintain public confidence in our electoral system.The associated documents have been deposited in the Libraries of both Houses.

Election Systems

Chloe Smith: On 16 March 2021, my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Home Secretary, announced to the House that the Government would be introducing legislation to change the voting system for all Police and Crime Commissioners (PCC), Combined Authority Mayors, and the Mayor of London.This legislation, due to be brought forward when Parliamentary time allowed, would see the voting systems change from the confusing and over-complicated Supplementary Vote system to the tried and tested First Past the Post system.I am pleased to announce that the Government intends to bring forward these changes in an amendment to the Elections Bill at Committee stage. Including these changes in the Elections Bill will ensure that they are implemented ahead of the next scheduled PCC elections in May 2024. This timetable will give good notice to all future candidates and electoral administrators of the change in voting system to First Past the Post well in advance of these elections, in accordance with Electoral Commission guidance.Additionally, I can announce that the voting system for Local Authority mayors in England, which are also currently on the Supplementary Vote system, will be changed to First Past the Post. This will ensure that all Mayoral elections across England will have a consistent voting system.These changes will allow us to deliver on the Government’s manifesto commitment to continue supporting the First Past the Post system. Given that two thirds of voters voted in favour of retaining First Past the Post for Parliamentary elections in the 2011 nationwide referendum, these changes also reflect the view of the British people.In this May’s London Mayoral elections, the Supplementary Vote system saw hundreds of thousands void, wasted or blank votes cast, reflecting voter confusion and the complex system. In a speech to this House in 1931, Winston Churchill when describing transferable voting said “the decision is to be determined by the most worthless votes given for the most worthless candidates.”The Supplementary Vote system as used in England and Wales is found nowhere else in the world. The nearest similar system where voters rank up to three candidates – the Contingent Vote system – is used only in Sri Lanka; by contrast, First Past the Post is the world’s most widely used electoral system. The Government believes that First Past the Post is a more straightforward way of electing representatives, which is transparent to both voters and administrators and results in a more accessible system.The change to First Past the Post will provide clear local accountability in a readily understandable way, making it easier for voters to express a clear choice: the person chosen to represent a local area will be the one who directly receives the most votes.

Department of Health and Social Care

COVID-19 Update

Jo Churchill: Shielding was introduced at the start of the pandemic as one of the few interventions available to support those who, at the time, were considered clinically extremely vulnerable.We know shielding advice is extremely restrictive and has a significant impact on people’s lives and their mental and physical wellbeing. It was right to take this step to protect the most vulnerable during the initial waves of the virus, and we put in place support for those who were advised to shield to help them to do so.We now know much more about the virus and what makes someone more or less vulnerable to COVID-19. We are also in a different situation than we were at the beginning of the pandemic. The vaccine continues to be successfully rolled out, with millions of people having received both doses and a booster programme about to commence. We also have proven, effective treatments, such as dexamethasone and tocilizumab, to support improved outcomes in clinical care pathways.We have not advised people to shield since 1 April. Since 19 July, the guidance for clinically extremely vulnerable people has been to follow the same advice as everyone else, with the suggestion of additional precautions people may wish to take. Those patients who are at risk from infectious diseases more generally and who can also remain less protected after other vaccinations may wish to discuss this with their specialist as part of their routine care.Due to the success of the vaccine rollout, improvements in treatment and clinical care, and growing understanding of the virus, the government has accepted expert clinical advice and decided to end the shielding programme and the requirement for centralised guidance for people who were considered clinically extremely vulnerable.This moves us towards the situation pre-Covid where individuals managed their own conditions with their health professionals. We believe this is a proportionate decision based on the success of the vaccine programme and the protection it offers, the availability of effective treatments and the highly restrictive impact of shielding on people’s mental health and wellbeing.